General industry applicability in utilities, aerospace, rail systems, and industrial power systems

LiveWire Innovation’s Sentinel 100 is the first in a new line of fully engineered, board level SSTDR “engines”

The credit card sized board and corresponding chipset enables engineers, OEMs, end-equipment manufacturers, and system operators to quickly develop and integrate the ability to monitor live electrical systems for detection and location of critical open and short circuits, arc faults, and hard to see intermittent events.Because it can operate on live systems, the Sentinel 100 also allows system operators to collect valuable baseline data that can be used to help predict and prevent outages.

SSTDR – Spread Spectrum Time-Domain Reflectometry

LiveWire’s patented Spread Spectrum Time Domain Reflectometry, or “SSTDR”, is a unique signal technology that uses low amplitude signals, pseudo-random noise (PN) codes and innovative correlation techniques to look for impedance changes in energized cables at distances of up to 4 miles with fault location accuracy of 98%. SSTDR enables system operators and equipment manufacturers to ‘see’ into their electrical infrastructure while in use, something existing cable test methods and traditional TDR are not able to do. The ability to monitor without interrupting operations enables the detection of hazardous electrical faults, such as open and short circuits and intermittent events, like arc faults. Constant monitoring means collection of valuable data to predict and prevent dangerous, damaging, or costly failures.

Applications for live system monitoring include safety, security, reliability, and the collection of data. The operational benefits of continuous monitoring with precise fault location include increased revenue through less downtime, enhanced safety for employees and customers, reduced maintenance costs, and theft prevention. For many customers, the ability to characterize their systems’ baseline performance and monitor for changes holds significant potential.